Discussion Questions on Edith Hamilton’s Mythology

Directions: Answer each question in complete sentences on a separate sheet of paper.

Chapter 1: The Gods Due Date:

1. Who were the first parents of lifelike creatures? Who were their children and grandchildren?2. Who were the Titans? Briefly describe them, and tell who first ruled them.3. What is Olympus and who lives there?4. Who were the twelve great Olympians?5. Who were Eros, Hebe, and Iris?6. Identify the graces and the muses. For what were they famous? Who were their parents?7. Name the two supreme deities of earth and their spheres of influence.8. What were satyrs, centaurs, and gorgons?9. Who were the Sirens and the Fates? What powers did they have?

Chapter 2: The Two Great Gods of Earth Due Date:

1. Why was Demeter, the divinity of grain, thought of as a goddess and not a god?2. Who was Persephone? How did her incident explain the seasons to the early Greeks?3. With what city was Dionysus associated? Why? What was unique about Dionysus and hisparentage?4. What was Dionysus’ connection with Greek drama?5. How did resurrection come to be associated with Dionysus?

Chapter 3: How the World and Mankind were Created Due Date:1. Describe the creation of Earth and Heaven.2. Who were the first creatures on Earth before humans?3. What steps did Zeus take to become ruler of heaven and earth? How did he prepare theway for humans to live on earth?4. Describe the world as the Greeks saw it.5. In one creation story, Prometheus and Epimetheus created humans. How? What gifts didPrometheus give to humans? Why?6. In the second creation story, the gods created five ages of humans. Name these ages,describe the people who lived in each, and tell their fate.7. Who was the first woman and why was she created? What harm did she bring to earth?8. Another story of creation begins with a flood. Who survived the flood, and what were theydirected to do? Why?Chapter 4: The Earliest Heroes Due Date:1. How did Io suffer? Why? What makes Io a heroine?2. How did Zeus capture Europa and where did he take her? Describe Europa’s fate.3. What places are named for Io and Europa?4. Who were Narcissus and Echo? How did each figure in the other’s life? What were theirfates?5. Compare and contrast the deaths and transformations of Hyacinth and Adonis.

Chapter 5: Cupid and Psyche Due Date:

1. Who was Psyche, and what was unique about her? In what way did she anger Venus, andwhat did Venus plan as revenge?2. How did Venus’ plan backfire?3. Describe how Psyche’s marriage was arranged. Whom did she marry, and what was hermarriage like?4. By what fault did Psyche lose her husband?5. How was Psyche reunited with her husband, and how was Venus finally pacified?

Chapter 6: Eight Brief Tales of Lovers Due Date:

1. How does the story of Pyramus and Thisbe explain the deep red color of mulberries?2. How did Orpheus lose his bride, Eurydice? What did he do to try to get her back? Whatlesson is to be learned form Orpheus’ ordeal?3. Who were Ceyx and Alcyone? What tragedy befell Ceyx? What was Alcyone’s virtue, andhow was it rewarded?4. Who was Pygmalion? What was Pygmalion’s virtue and how was it rewarded?5. In what way were Bacuis and Philemon different from their neighbors? How did Jupiterreward them and why?6. Who was Endymion? What was his outstanding trait? What happened to him because of thistrait?7. According to mythology, how did the laurel tree come into being? What did Apollo say hewould do with the laurel leaves? Why?8. Who were Alpheus and Arethusa? Why was Arethusa changed into a spring? What wasAlpheus’ fate?Chapter 13: The Trojan War

1. Who was Paris, and what situation led to the judgement of Paris?

2. What prophesy had been given to Paris’ father about his son? Why was Paris working asa shepherd instead of living as a prince?

3. How did the goddesses ask Paris to choose among them? What choice did he make?

4. How did the judgement of Paris spark events that would lead to the Trojan War?

5. Why were the princes of Greece bound to help Menelaus get Helen back from Troy? Whywere they eager to help?

6. How did Odysseus plan to avoid going to Troy and how did his plan work out?

7. Why did Achilles’ mother plan to keep him from going to Troy? How did her plan workout?

8. Why was Iphigenia killed? What effects did her death have?

9. Identify Protesilaus and Laodamia, and briefly tell their story.

10. Identify Hecuba, Hector, and Andromache.

11. What did Hector and Achilles represent to their armies? What did these two men knowabout their fates as they went into battle?

12. What part did Chyrseis play in the war?

13. Why did Agamemnon and Achilles quarrel? What did Achilles do as a result of thequarrel?

14. What led to Achilles to reenter the battle?

15. How did Athena trick Hector so that Achilles defeated him?

16. How did Achilles dishonor Hector after Hector’s death?

17. Which side did Zeus favor in the Trojan War? Describe how he influence the war, up toHector’s death. What were his motivations?

18. Which side did Hera favor in the Trojan War? Describe the ways she influenced the war,up to Hector’s death. What were her motivations?Chapter 14: The Fall of Troy

1. Who came to the aid of the Trojans? How did this affect the war?

2. Who killed Achilles and how?

3. How did Ajax die?

4. How did Paris die?

5. What was the Palladium? Why did the Greeks want it? How did they manage to captureit?

6. What plan did Odysseus devise to conquer Troy once and for all?

7. Who said, “I fear the Greeks even when they bear gifts”? What happened to thatperson?

9. What became of Prince Aenaeas of Troy and his family?

10. What became of Helen of Troy?

Chapter 1: The Gods

2. The Titans were also known as the elder gods. There were enormous creatures ofimmense strength. Cronus was their first ruler. (pg 24, 2nd¶).

3.Olympus is the home of the gods, and thus they became known as the Olympians.It is an actual mountain in Greece; however, the Greeks believed that the Olympus wherethe gods lived was somewhere above the earth, in the clouds. (pg 25, 2nd¶).

4. See page one of the handout and your book beginning on page 27.

5. Eros (Cupid) was the god of love, Hebe was the goddess of youth who was married toHercules, Iris was goddess of the rainbow and another messenger god. (pg 36 - 37)

6. The graces were 3 sisters who were famous for their charm and beauty; they were thedaughters of Zeus and Eurynome. The Muses were 9 sisters who were famous for theirmusic which caused people to forget their troubles; they were the daughters of Zeus andMnemosyne, Memory. (pg 37)

7. Demeter was the goddess of the corn, and Dionysus was god of the wine/vine. (pg 41,1st¶).

8. Satyrs were goat men, centaurs were half human and half horse, the gorgons weredragon-like creatures who could turn people to stone. (pg 43 - 44)

9. Who were the Sirens and the Fates? What powers did they have?The Sirens had mysterious voices who lured sailors in to their deaths. The Fates had thepower of life, death and destiny; when it was time for someone to die, the Fates were theones who cut the cord that represented that person’s life. (pg 44)

ROMAN GODSpg 44 (bottom¶) - 45 (top¶). “It was a simple matter to adopt the Greek gods because theRomans did not have definitely personified gods of their own. They were a people of deepreligious feeling, but they had little imagination. They could never have created theOlympians, each a distinct , vivid personality.”Chapter 2: The Two Great Gods of Earthpg 48 (1st ¶): “For the most part the immortal gods were of little use to human beings, andoften they were quite the reverse of useful.” (2nd¶): “There were two, however, who werealtogether different, who were indeed mankind’s best friends: Demeter and Dionysus.”

1. (pg 48 2nd¶): “It was natural that the divine power which brought forth the grain shouldbe thought of as a goddess, not a god. When the business of men was hunting and fighting,the care of the fields belonged to the women...”

2. (pg 51) Demeter had an only daughter, Persephone, the maiden of the spring. (2nd¶):The lord of the dark underworld (Hades) carried her off when she strayed too far from hercompanions....Zeus intervened...but (pg 45, bottom ¶) Demeter must lose Persephone forfour months every year (winter).

3. (top of pg 56): Dionysus was associated with Thebes because that is where he was bornand because his mother was a Thebian princess. His parentage was unique because he isthe only god whose parents were not both gods themselves.

4.He inspired Greeks to write plays. His festival, which was held every spring, wascelebrated with presentations of plays.

5. (pg 63) The myths say that Dionysus was killed every year by being mutilated, just asgrapevines are pruned each fall. But every spring Dionysus came back from the dead. Thesprouting of new leaves symbolized his resurrection; the Greeks also used his resurrectionto mean that their souls must live on after their own deaths.

Chapter 3: How the World and Mankind were Created

1. In the beginning was Chaos, without shape or form. Chaos had 2 children: Night andErebus (the place of death). The child of Night & Erebus was Love. When Love was born,order and beauty appeared. Then Love created Light and Day. Next Earth rose up andcreated Heaven as her cover.

2. monsters (with 50 heads and 100 hands), Cyclopes, and Titans

3. Zeus first rebelled against his father and made Cronus cough up all of Zeus’s brothersand sisters. Then he waged war on the Titans with the help of the monsters and the wiseTitan Prometheus. Finally Zeus cleared the earth of all giants and monsters to make ininhabitable for humans.4. (pg 70) The Greeks saw the world as a disk, divided in the middle by water called thesea. Ocean flowed around the edges of this disk. On one side were people who lived in apeaceful, beautiful land, while the other was covered by a dark mist from where peoplewere seldom seen.

5. Zeus asked Prometheus and Epimetheus to create humans. Epimetheus first made theanimals and gave them all sorts of wonderful qualities (swiftness, wings, fur). When itcame time to create the humans Epimetheus realized he had nothing left, so he went to hisbrother Prometheus. It was Prometheus who created the humans and gave them theability to stand upright like the gods. He also stole fire from heaven, as man’s means ofprotection.6. golden race= happy people who became spirits when they died. silver race=unintelligent race who constantly injured each other.brass race=violent people who killed each other off. 4th race was a time of god-like heroeswho went to the isle of the blessed when they died. iron race=thought to be the currentage, very evil, grows wicked generation after generation, will ultimately be destroyed byZeus.

7. Pandora was created by Zeus in his anger against Prometheus for stealing fire. Shebrought a box to earth that was filled with plagues, sorrows, misfortunes. She wasforbidden to open the box, but she was so curious that she just had to know. The plaguesfilled the earth, but fortunately one gracious god had included hope in the box, so at leastthe people had hope.

8. Zeus once destroyed humans by means of a flood when they became very wicked. Onlytwo survived--Prometheus’ son and niece (Decalion and Pyrrha). They rode out the flood ina wooden box. Afterward they went to a temple and were instructed to throw stones behindtheir backs to create a new race of people. These people were known as the Stone People.

Chapter 4: The Earliest Heroes

1. Io was seduced by Zeus and turned into a cow (heifer) to hide her from Hera. Herademanded the cow be given to her as a gift; Zeus could not refuse. Hera put Io under thecare of Argus (who had 100 eyes). Hermes later came and rescued Io, but Hera continuedto torment her for years. Io was eventually restored to her human form. She became aheroine for the way in which she handled this torture, and she was famous becauseHercules was one of her descendants.

2. Zeus captured Europa by turning himself into a bull and carrying her off to his island,Crete. She lived there and bore him many glorious sons.3. Io = Ionian Sea and Bosphorus (which means “ford of the cow”). Eurpoa = Europe.

4. Narcissus was a beautiful lad and Echo a wood nymph. Echo fell in love with Narcissus.He rejected her, as he had everyone else. She had been cursed by Hera never to speakfreely, but only to repeat what was said to her. She wasted away to nothing and all thatremains today is her voice (an echo). Narcissus finally fell in love with himself aspunishment for breaking so many hearts. He saw his own reflection in a pool of water andcould not leave that place because he found himself to be so beautiful. When he died hisbody turned into a beautiful flower that was given his name, Narcissus.

5. Hyacinthus and Adonis both suffered terrible, accidental deaths. The were friends of thegods and in their deaths their blood became beautiful flowers, the Hyacinth and Anemone.

Chapter 5: Cupid and Psyche

1.Psyche was the youngest daughter of a king and she was famous for outstanding beauty.Men worshiped her and in doing so neglected to worship Venus. This outraged the goddesswho commanded her son Cupid to make Psyche fall in love with the most hideous beast.

2. This plan backfired because Psyche was so beautiful that Cupid fell in love with herhimself.

3. Psyche was so beautiful, but yet remained unmarried. Her father sought advice fromApollo’s oracle who told him to leave Psyche on a rocky hill and a horrible serpent wouldmake her his bride. Her parents did as instructed, but instead of marrying a serpent Psychewas taken to a beautiful palace where she was married to a man that she could not see.

4. Psyche’s sisters were jealous; they convinced her that she had indeed married theserpent and that she must look upon her husband to be sure. One night she brought herlantern to his bed to gaze upon him. She was so surprised to see that he was the god ofLove, Cupid, that she dripped hot oil on him and he awoke. He was so upset that she hadnot TRUSTED him that her ran off.

5. After enduring many tortuous tasks brought on by Venus, Psyche was forgiven andrescued by Cupid. Psyche was made immortal and became Cupid’s wife. Since she couldnot hate her daughter-in-law, Venus was finally pacified.Chapter 6: Eight Brief Tales of Lovers1. Pyramus and Thisbe’s blood stained the mulberries and gave them their deep red color.

2. Orpheus was the son of a muse and therefore sang beautifully. Immediately after theirwedding Eurydice was stung by a viper and died. Orpheus sang so sweetly that Hades(Pluto) allowed Orpheus to take her from the underworld, but he was forbidden to lookupon her until they were both out of the underworld. He turned around too quickly, andshe was forced to return--this time for good. The lesson is that one must obey the gods.

3. Ceyx was a king and Alcyone was his wife. Ceyx went to sea and encountered a fiercestorm. It overpowered his ship and he drowned. Alcyone’s virtue was a faithful love forCeyx. It was rewarded when they were both turned into seabirds.

4. Pygmalion was a talented sculptor who hated women. His virtue was his creative genius.With his talent he created a statue of a woman that was so life like that he fell in love withit. Venus took pity on him and rewarded his talent by turning the sculpture into a human.

5. Bacuis and Philemon were different from their neighbors because though poor they werehospitable to strangers. Jupiter (Zeus) rewarded them for sharing their hospitality with himand Mercury, who were dressed as beggars. Bacuis and Philemon were given a palacewhere they lived happily ever after, and when they died they were turned into 2 trees with1 trunk so they would always be together.

6. Endymion was a shepherd of surpassing beauty. He was so beautiful the Moon fell in lovewith him and put him into eternal sleep where she could kiss him whenever she wished.

7. Apollo was chasing Daphne one day. To escape him she cried out to her father the rivergod, who saved her by turning her into a laurel tree. Apollo decreed that her leaves wouldbe used as wreaths for the victors of his games.

8. Arethusa was a follower of Artemis who wanted nothing to do with men. Alpheus was ariver god who pursued her. In her attempts to escape Arethusa called to Artemis to help;Artemis turned her into a underground spring. Alpheus transformed into a river andfollowed her so they could at last be together.

Answers to Discussion Questions Chapter 13: The Trojan War

1. Paris was a young prince working as a shepherd, who was an excellent judge of beauty.The situation leading to the judgement began when Eris, goddess of discord, was notinvited to a wedding in Olympus. Out of spite she threw a golden apple marked “for thefairest” into the feast and Hera, Aphrodite, and Athena all began to quarrel over to whom itbelonged.

2. Priam, the King of Troy, had been told that Paris would one day bring ruin to Troy.Therefore, Priam sent Paris away from Troy to be a shepherd.

3. They each bribed him and he chose according to the best bribe, which happened to beAphrodites. She offered him the fairest woman in the world in exchange for the goldenapple.

4. Aphrodite knew that Helen, the wife of Spartan King Menelaus, was the fairest woman onearth. Paris went to her and “stole” and went back to Troy. Naturally Menelaus called onthe Greek men to help him get Helen back.

5. Because Helen was so beautiful, many princes had sought her hands. Helen’sstepfather, Tyndareus, persuaded all her suitors to promise that if anyone tried to steal heraway from the prince chosen as her husband they would all come to her husband’s aid. Allagreed to this and were therefore bound to help when Paris took Helen. Furthermore, theywere eager to help because of the adventure and the opportunity to destroy a great citylike Troy.

6. Odysseus pretended to be insane to stay with his family and avoid going to Troy. Amessenger was sent to Odysseus; the messenger doubted that Odysseus was truly saneand put Odysseus son in front of Odysseus’ plow. This method worked for Odysseusswerved to avoid the boy and thereby proved his own sanity. He was forced to join theothers.

7. Achilles’ mother had been told that if her son went to Troy, he would die. Therefore shedressed Achilles in girl’s clothing and hid him among the maidens at the court of KingLycomedes. Odysseus dressed as a peddler and went to find him. Odysseus hid someweapons among the jewels he was peddling, and Achilles immediately gave himself awayby showing interest in the weapons. He was easily persuaded to accompany the Greeks toTroy.

8. Though the Greeks were eager to sail for Troy the north wind prevented them fromleaving. Finally the prophet Calchas told the Greeks that Artemis was angry because aGreek had killed one of her sacred animals, a rabbit. To make up for that wrong, Artemiscalled for the sacrifice Iphigenia, the oldest daughter of Agamemnon, the Greek’scommander in chief. So the girl was sacrificed, and the Greeks were able to sail. However,for the evil they had done, evil was sure to be visited upon them.

9. Protesilaus and Laodamia were husband and wife. Protesilaus had sailed to Troy with theGreek army. He was the first man to come ashore and thus the first to die as had beenprophesied. Hermes brought him from the dead to see his wife on last time. Laodamiacould not live without him, so she killed herself.10. Hecuba, queen of Troy, was Priam’s wife. They had many sons including Hectorand Paris. Andromache was Hector’s wife.

11. Hector was the greatest Trojan warrior, while Achilles was the greatestchampion for the Greeks. Each knew that they would die in the war.

12. Chryseis was the daughter of a Trojan priest of Apollo. During the ninth year ofwar, she was captured by the Greeks and give to Agamemnon. Her father prayed toApollo who used his arrows to bring illness and death upon the Greeks. The prophetCalchas advised that Chryseis be returned to her father. So she was, and Apollo’sanger was appeased.

13. After Agamemnon grudgingly sent Chryseis to her father, he dispatched

messengers to take another captured girl--Briseis--from Achilles. Achilles was soangry when his “prize” was taken that he refused to take part in the battle, thusdepriving the Greeks of their best warrior.

14. Achilles reentered the battle when his friend Patroclus was killed by Hector; hereentered to avenge his friend’s death.

15. Athena went with Achilles in pursuit of Hector. When Hector turned and ranfrom the great Greek warrior, Athena appeared in disguise as Hector’s brother,Deiphobus. Deiphobus encouraged Hector to turn and fight Achilles. Hector lost hisweapon and was defeated.

16. Achilles tied Hector’s feet to the back of the chariot. Then he drove round andround the walls of Troy, dragging Hector’s body in the dust.

17. Zeus favored the Trojans, but he tried to maintain neutrality because the godsand goddesses were divided over the outcome. He also wanted to avoid conflictwith Hera, who favored the Greeks. He influenced the war by promising to help theTrojans---he sent Agamemnon a false dream that he would be victorious if heattacked, but in reality without Achilles the Greeks could not win. He alsointervened on other occasions.

18. Hera favored the Greeks because she was still angry at Paris for choosingAphrodite as the most beautiful goddess. She interfered by encouraging Zeus toremain neutral. She interfered by persuading Pandarus to break the truce. Shepersuaded Poseidon to help the Greeks; she also seduced Zeus and put him into adeep sleep.

Chapter 14: The Fall of Troy

1. Who came to the aid of the Trojans? How did this affect the war?Ethiopian Prince Memnon and his armies came to aid the Trojans. For a time hisarmies helped the Trojans gains the upper hand until Achilles killed Memnon.

2. Who killed Achilles and how? When Achilles was a baby his mother dippedhim into the river Styx to make him invulnerable. However, she neglected to dipthe heel by which she held him, so Paris was able to kill Achilles with an arrow thatApollo guided to Achilles’ heel.

3. How did Ajax die? After Achilles’ death it was decided that Odysseus, ratherthan Ajax, would get Achilles’ armor. Ajax was angry and decided to killAgamemnon and Menelaus. However, he was struck by madness and attacked theGreeks’ cattle and sheep instead, thinking they were human beings. When hecame to his senses he was so ashamed that he committed suicide.

4. How did Paris die? Paris was fatally wounded in battle by Philoctetes. Paris askedhis first wife, the nymph Oenone, to heal him, but in her bitterness over beingabandoned for Helen she refused and he died.

5. What was the Palladium? Why did the Greeks want it? How did they manage tocapture it? The Palladium was an image of Pallas Athena in the city of Troy.The Greeks learned that they could not defeat Troy as long as the Palladiumremained in the city. Therefore, Odysseus and Diomedes climbed over the wall bynight, stole the statue, and took it to their camp.

6. What plan did Odysseus devise to conquer Troy once and for all?Odysseus had a Greek woodworker build a huge wooden horse. When it wasfinished he and other chieftans hid inside while the Greek army sailed away in theirships. Only one Greek was left behind and he was to convince the Trojans that thehorse was an offering to Athena. The Greeks hoped that this story would promptthe Trojans to take it into the city, at which point the Greek warrior could come outat night, open the city gates, and let the Greek army inside.7. Who said, “I fear the Greeks even when they bear gifts”? What happened to thatperson?The Tojan priest, Laocoon, made that statement. He was trying to warn the peopleof Troy against taking the wooden horse into the city. In retribution, Poseidon senttwo sea serpents that crushed Laocoon and his two sons.

8. Describe the fall of Troy. What happened to the remaining Trojans?

At night the chieftains inside the wooden horse opened the gates of Troy. And justas planned, in marched the Greek army which had sailed back to Troy. The Greeksslaughtered the Trojans. By morning the city was in ruins and most of the Trojanleaders (including King Priam) were dead. The women and children who werepermitted to live were enslaved and divided among the Greeks.

9. What became of Prince Aenaeas of Troy and his family?

Aeneas’ mother, Aphrodite, helped her son escape from the burning city along withhis father, whom he carried on his shoulders. Aeneas also managed to save his son,though his wife died in the flames.

10. What became of Helen of Troy?

Aphrodite helped Helen escape from the burning city and reunited her with herhusband Menelaus.